OC’s unadjusted unemployment rate rose to 3.9% in January from revised 3.5% in December and below the 4.1% reported in the same period last year, the state Employment Development Department said.
Orange County employees totaled 1.57 million, a decline of 28,100 nonfarm jobs compared with December, as local retailers cut payroll by 7,000 after the holidays.
Professional and business services reported the second largest month-to-month decline with a loss of 5,600 jobs; some 65% of those losses were in administrative and support services, which includes temporary help firms.
Other employment decreases include government, down 4,600 jobs; leisure and hospitality, down 2,900; construction and manufacturing, down 2,300 each; and financial activities, down 2,100.
OC on a year-over-year basis in January added 16,800 jobs, led by 3,500 jobs in professional services for a total of 295,000, and 3,500 in leisure, which has 208,200. Manufacturing jobs fell 500 to 154,800.
Statewide, California’s unadjusted unemployment rate fell to 5.1% from 5.2% in December as the state added 9,700 nonfarm payroll jobs. The rate was 5.7% in January of 2016.
On a year-over-year basis, nine of the state’s eleven industry sectors added 338,200 jobs, led by education and health services, up 3.7%, and government, up 2.4%. Manufacturing jobs declined 0.4%, or 4,800 jobs, while mining and logging dropped 11%, or 2,900 jobs.
Statewide, 386,875 people received unemployment benefits in January, up from 367,944 in December and down from 410,293 in the same period last year.
The U.S. reported 4.8% unemployment in January compared with 4.7% in December.
